Arizona is second only to Florida with Canadian home buyers.
I bet Arizona is the top destination for home buyers from British Columbia and Alberta.
It’s become super convenient for Canadians to travel to Arizona. The number of daily direct flights from western Canada to Arizona has skyrocketed over the last 10 years.
For example, with a quick online search I found 7 direct flights in one day from Calgary to Phoenix. Direct flights take only 3 hours so it’s a quick way to get a break from the Canadian winters. (For example, the high temperature on a recent day in Edmonton was -9 degrees celsius.)
In addition, property taxes are phenomenally lower in Arizona than in California or Texas (or Florida, for that matter) which greatly lowers the overall cost of owning vacation homes in Arizona.
- Factoid: About 86% of Canadians paid all cash for their American homes according to a study published last year by economists at the National Association or Realtors.
Are you a Canadian? Please leave a comment comparing Arizona to other states for your winter home. Thanks!
2 Responses to Canadians prefer Arizona homes far more than California or Texas homes
Your bet is a little off because you forgot to factor in that Calgary is a connection airport.
I’ve flown that route several times. Most of the people on the flight from Calgary to Phoenix are from prairie cities like Winnipeg, Manitoba or Regina, Saskatchewan, connecting through the larger airport in Calgary. In the winter there’s some direct flights from those prairie cities (usually WestJet or United) but layovers in Calgary are still the default.
I know about a dozen prairie Canadians who own AZ property. Though the climate is 180* different, the flat, low-density city with big, open blue skies makes prairie Canadians feel quite at home. I know fewer Albertans and British Columbians, but they seem to think Palm Springs is the preferred destination. The Albertan and British Columbian economy is also more robust than the more sleepy prairie provinces (which are stable and steady). So while sheer numbers dictate that most choose AZ, I would bet that a high-ish proportion of BC and AB Canadians go to California, with MB and SK being the largest percentage choosing AZ.
If you wanted to test it further, I’d attend a Coyotes game in Glendale. You’ll see a few hundred Winnipeg Jets jerseys every game and I wouldn’t underestimate that franchise draw from Winnipeg specifically as the Winnipeg Jets became the Phoenix Coyotes in 1996. Last time I went, the parking lot was 1/4 MB, SK, and AB plates, and that’s not even counting the number of people who flew here.
Alison, Great comment! Thanks!
I should have mentioned Manitoba and Saskatchewan in the article. I was thinking about mentioning them along with Alberta and British Columbia but I wasn’t sure if those two Prairie Provinces leaned toward Florida or Arizona/California for their winter homes.
I wonder if I could get a breakdown of Canadian homeowners in metro Phoenix broken down by Canadian province? When you buy a home in Arizona, you have to give your permanent address (so the counties know were to send the property tax bill) so I could use that to get some solid numbers. Now that I think about it, I bet ASU already has those numbers somewhere.
Thanks again!
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